Sandström’s third-period brilliance moves Royals into sole possession of 1st, 1-0

Reading, PA – Reading Royals goaltender Felix Sandström registered his first North American shutout with 27 saves, including 15 in the third period, to move the Royals into sole possession of first place in the North Division with a 1-0 victory over the Adirondack Thunder Sunday at Santander Arena. Ralph Cuddemi scored the game’s only goal at 2:11 of the second, assisted by Jimmy Mazza (1st pro point). The Royals are on a season-long four-game winning streak and earned their first 1-0 win since Mar. 2016 at Adirondack.Reading is up to 6-3-1-0 on the season (13 pts.) and the Royals are 4-1-0-0 at home. They’ve taken their last four games at Santander Arena and the team has seven more home contests this month.

The Royals ripped 25 shots in first period and out shot Adirondack, 25-4, in the frame, tied for the most shots the Royals have ever had in a period (vs. Kalamazoo, 25 shots in 2nd per., Feb. 10, 2013). All 16 Royals skaters had a shot on goal in the first. The four shots allowed tied the fewest surrendered in a period by Reading this season. After two periods, the Royals had 40 shots and the Thunder were credited with 12.Eamon McAdam was the tough-luck loser with 43 saves on 44 shots.Head Coach Kirk MacDonald leads the Royals to the road at Wheeling Fri., Nov. 8 at 7:05 p.m. Wizard Night is Sat., Nov. 9 at 7:00 p.m. vs. Wheeling to complete the home-and-home weekend. The 2019-20 season is presented by Tower Health UPMC Health Plan.

Box ScoreInside the shots The Royals attempted nine of the first ten shots, 13 of the opening 14 and out shot the Thunder by 21 in the scoreless first frame. It represented the largest shot differential in a period since Kirk MacDonald became Head Coach.Ralph Cuddemi broke the scoreless game on one of the Royals’ first line rushes of the second period. Taking a pass from Jimmy Mazza, he drove the right slot and slung it off McAdam’s midsection. The puck bounced in the air and at the right doorstep he batted it through.Single-game tickets and mini-plans are on sale by visiting royalshockey.com/promotions, calling 610-898-7825 and visiting Santander Arena and The Weidenhammer Box Office at 700 Penn Street, Reading, PA.About the RoyalsThe Royals are in their 19th ECHL season and are proudly affiliated with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers and AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The Royals won the Kelly Cup in 2013, have made the playoffs 14 times, and are four-time division champions. The Berks County Convention Center Authority (BCCCA), founded in 1996, owns the Royals and oversees operations at Santander Arena and the Santander Arena Performing Arts Center.Listen to all Royals broadcasts at Mixlr.com/ReadingRoyals or by downloading the Mixlr App from the App Store or Google Play. All Royals away games are broadcasted on BCTV (Ch. 15 Comcast, Ch. 19 Service Electric) and Mixlr.